All Articles: PlayStation Experience 2015

Square Enix has been building towards Final Fantasy VII Remake for a long time now, and Producer Yoshinori Kitase has always said that any do-over of the groundbreaking RPG would require a significant amount of time and effort. Kitase chose to expand upon these thoughts today in a post on the Square Enix Blog, stating that a multi-part release is required for the Remake to “go beyond” the original game:

With Final Fantasy VII Remake, we have the opportunity to go beyond the story, world and experience of Final Fantasy VII in ways we’ve always dreamed of – from the depths of Midgar to the skies above the Planet. The multi-part format enables us to expand the original story and turn it into an epic experience for fans and new gamers alike.

Kitase added that, instead of adding content, cuts to the Remake would have been necessary if it were released in a single package:

We’ve seen everyone’s comments and reactions to the news that Final Fantasy VII Remake will be a multi-part series and many have speculated correctly as to the reason why we have made this decision. If we were to try to fit everything from the original into one remake instalment, we would have to cut various parts and create a condensed version of Final Fantasy VII. We knew none of you would have wanted that.

The Final Fantasy Remake is currently in development for the PS4, though it’ll be released on Sony’s system “first,” so expect to eventually make its way to the PC and/or Xbox One.

Like the gallery at Augusta National, Sony was super quiet about New Hot Shots Golf during this weekend’s PlayStation Experience. But the cartoony golf franchise is most definitely in development for the PS4, and it was even playable on the show floor for fans looking to tee it up.

New Hot Shots Golf doesn’t have a release date yet, but we know that it’ll feature a “deep set” of character customization options (a first for the franchise), as well as local multiplayer, online multiplayer, and a Mission Mode. In development at Clap Hanz and Sony Japan Studio, SCEA’s Tomoyo Kimura recently talked a bit about the character customization options on the PlayStation Blog:

In past Hot Shots Golf games, unlocking new golfer characters and building a lineup of athletes with various strengths and weaknesses was key. However in New Hot Shots Golf, players start by creating and dressing their very own golfer, utilizing a deep set of customization tools. By playing and completing specific tasks, players can level up their personalized golfer and build strength for long drives, precise control for putting on the green, and more.

New Hot Shots Golf will also offer fully explorable courses for the first time. Players will be able to walk from hole-to-hole or hop in a golf cart and tear things up Caddyshack-style. There will be water hazards stocked with fish… turning your golf game into a fishing game!

Double Fine Productions has been killing it lately, especially with this new trailer for Day of the Tentacle Remastered. Community Manager James Spafford had a lot to say on the PlayStation Blog about the game as well.

For those of you who don’t know, the game was “originally released by LucasArts in 1993 as a sequel to Ron Gilbert’s ground breaking Maniac Mansion,” and it’s a mind-bending, time travel, cartoon puzzle adventure game in which three unlikely friends work together to prevent an evil, mutated purple tentacle from taking over the world!” The remaster will have new artwork and remastered audio, “which the original 90’s marketing blurb described as ‘zany!'”

That’s not all. Players will be “able to switch back and forth between classic and remastered modes, and mix and match audio, graphics, and UI to their heart’s desire,” which sounds incredible. Not only that, they’ve “also included a concept art browser, and recorded a commentary track with the game’s original creators Tim Schafer, Dave Grossman, Larry Ahern, Peter Chan, Peter McConnell, and Clint Bajakian.” How righteous!

Day of the Tentacle Remastered is due out in March 2016 on the PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, and PC.

The wonderful James Spafford, Community Manager at Double Fine, wrote an awesome post at the PlayStation Blog about the remastering of Full Throttle!

“With the smell of burning asphalt hanging staunchly in the air, we’re proud to announce that we’ll be remastering Tim Schafer’s classic LucasArts adventure game Full Throttle!” he wrote excitedly. With their Grim Fandango and Day of the Tentacle remasters, this “will complete the trilogy of Tim’s games from LucasArts that we’ve been given the chance to restore.” The original creators will be involved, and the remaster of the game will have new artwork, restored sound and music, and will have lots of special features, including “concept artwork, commentary tracks, and as many other things as we can think of!”

Full Throttle Remastered will be coming to the PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, and PC.

In addition to revealing a new trailer for the Final Fantasy VII Remake, Square Enix also confirmed the game will eventually be released as a “multi-part series.”

According to the publisher’s complete statement, ” will be told across a multi-part series, with each entry providing its own unique experience.” That doesn’t give us a whole lot to go on, but it sounds like the Final Fantasy VII Remake could be released episodically, perhaps similar in style to Final Fantasy IV: The After Years.

In anticipation of the PlayStation Experience show, the PlayStation Blog’s YouTube Channel also got a chance to talk with Producer Yoshinori Kitase about the game. While he didn’t offer any new details about the Final Fantasy VII Remake’s release schedule, he did confirm that the real-time nature of the gameplay seen in the trailer will somewhat carry over to the final game:

I can’t say the new game is completely action-based, but it has more of that element and real-time than the previous game. However, what makes Final Fantasy and RPG different from other games is that players have the ability to choose weapons, capabilities, and magic to be strategic minded, so while the new game has more real-time element, it will also maintain that strategy building element, balancing these two factors perfectly to enhance the gaming experience.

The Final Fantasy VII Remake will be released for the PS4 “first,” but when that’ll be and in what form it’ll take is anybody’s guess.

Bandai Namco has announced Ace Combat 7 this weekend during the PlayStation Experience. This will be the first game in the series to appear on the PlayStation 4, and Bandai Namco boasts that “PS4 players will be further immersed in Ace Combat 7’s realism through exclusive features developed specifically for the Sony PlayStation VR.” They’re also promising “the fiercest air combat experience ever through photorealistic visuals, intense dog-fighting action, a multitude of authentic and futuristic aircraft to fly, and an immersive storyline.”

No release date was announced, but if you’re interested, you should check out the intense trailer above to check out the visuals.

Rez Infinite was announced for the PlayStation 4 (with PlayStation VR features) at this weekend’s PlayStation Experience. Tetsuya Mizuguchi took to the PlayStation Blog to go into more detail about the game, which was playable at the event this weekend. It was even playable inside their special “Synesthesia Suit,” which he compares to the PlayStation 2’s “Trance Vibrator.”

In his poignant post, Mizuguchi talks about how the original Rez, which came out in 2001, was way ahead of its time. “Well, to be honest, when the original Rez came out back in 2001, not everyone understood what we were trying to do with the game — but the few people that did ‘get it,’ really got it,” he wrote. “A dedicated and steadily growing number of fans called it visionary. Revolutionary. Ahead of its time.”

The technology of the time just wasn’t up to their vision, but now, 14 years later, it might just be good enough for their game to truly come to life. While there’s no release date set for the game, Mizuguchi said they’ll be able to announce more soon. “Our time is coming, my friends. I hope you’ll be there for it.”

The last few days have been awesome for fans of the Uncharted series. Yet another trailer was released at the PlayStation Experience this weekend, introducing us to yet another new character. Watch the video above for more details… and to learn yet another facet of Nathan Drake’s life.

Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End is scheduled to launch on March 18, 2016 for PlayStation 4.